--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Increasingly, the state system has been…" description: "\"Increasingly, the state system has been eroding. Terrorists have exploited this weakness by burrowing into the state system in order to attack it.\" — G..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ef/george-p-shultz-18551_burrowing_increasingly-the-state-system-has-been-e_2936362.jpg" --- # Increasingly, the state system has been eroding… ![“Increasingly, the state system has been eroding. Terrorists have exploited this weakness by burrowing into the state system in order to attack it.” quote by George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ef/george-p-shultz-18551_burrowing_increasingly-the-state-system-has-been-e_2936362.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ef/george-p-shultz-18551_burrowing_increasingly-the-state-system-has-been-e_2936362.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ef/george-p-shultz-18551_burrowing_increasingly-the-state-system-has-been-e_2936362.jpg) > “Increasingly, the state system has been eroding. Terrorists have exploited this weakness by burrowing into the state system in order to attack it.” [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. State institutions are weakening, allowing terrorists to infiltrate and exploit them. **In simple terms:** Weak states invite terrorist infiltration. Key Takeaway Strengthen institutions to prevent abuse. Themes security terrorism statecraft Mood concerned urgent Type policy analytical When to use this quote - government reform - counter‑terrorism policy - public safety Key Concepts institutional decay asymmetric warfare Questions to Reflect On - What reforms can close these gaps? - How can societies balance security and liberty? A Different Perspective Complex causes of erosion may not be solely institutional. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Burrowing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burrowing/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Terrorists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrorists/) [Weakness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weakness/) ## Related quotes > [The Patriot Act closed dangerous gaps in America's law enforcement and intelligence capabilities, gaps that terrorists exploited when they attacked us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/the-patriot-act-closed-dangerous-gaps-in-america-s-law-enforcement/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [Indeed Christianity passes. Passes - it has gone! It has littered the beaches of life with churches, cathedrals, shrines and crucifixes, prejudices and intolerances,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/indeed-christianity-passes-passes-it-has-gone-it-has-littered-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Like a small animal burrowing into its hole, I shift furniture around, and back myself into a cozy corner, with my back to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-steel/like-a-small-animal-burrowing-into-its-hole-i-shift-furniture-around/) [Danielle Steel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-steel/) > [Selfishness is the most constant of human motives. Patriotism, humanity, or the love of God may lead to sporadic outbursts sweep away the heaped-up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-w-chesnutt/selfishness-is-the-most-constant-of-human-motives-patriotism-humanity/) [Charles W. Chesnutt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-w-chesnutt/) > [Denial is pushing something out of your awareness. Anything you hide in the basement has a way of burrowing under the house and showing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-sasportas/denial-is-pushing-something-out-of-your-awareness-anything-you-hide/) Howard Sasportas > [“...I could feel her burrowing into my heart. I didn't know if the burrowing was like a kitten cuddling up to its mother or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-porter/i-could-feel-her-burrowing-into-my-heart-i-didn-t-know-if-the/) Jason Porter > [They always mean beautiful things like hummingbirds. I always reply by saying that I think of a little child in east Africa with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-attenborough/they-always-mean-beautiful-things-like-hummingbirds-i-always-reply-by/) [David Attenborough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-attenborough/) > [People sometimes ask me if I would not give anything to be white, I answer, in the words of the song, most emphatically, 'No.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bert-williams/people-sometimes-ask-me-if-i-would-not-give-anything-to-be-white-i/) [Bert Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bert-williams/) > [The only times you touch the ball with your hand are when you tee it up and when you pick it out of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-venturi/the-only-times-you-touch-the-ball-with-your-hand-are-when-you-tee-it/) [Ken Venturi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-venturi/) > [“She had been on the surface of the leaf, the leaf like a page, and the page that of a book; then by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-zurcher/she-had-been-on-the-surface-of-the-leaf-the-leaf-like-a-page-and-the/) [Andrew Zurcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-zurcher/) > [Of women, the most we can say, not being Frenchmen, is that they are burrowing animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-durrell/of-women-the-most-we-can-say-not-being-frenchmen-is-that-they-are/) [Lawrence Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-durrell/) > [“Tackled some giant, burrowing beetles the other week, if you can believe that…. At that stage I didn’t know about it either – only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-speed/tackled-some-giant-burrowing-beetles-the-other-week-if-you-can/) [Mark Speed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-speed/) > [And I despise your books, I despise wisdom and the blessings of this world. It is all worthless, fleeting, illusory, and deceptive, like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/and-i-despise-your-books-i-despise-wisdom-and-the-blessings-of-this/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [But without a caring society, without each citizen voluntarily accepting the weight of responsibility, government is destined to grow even larger, taking more of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeb-bush/but-without-a-caring-society-without-each-citizen-voluntarily/) [Jeb Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeb-bush/) > [Reggie Jackson hit one off me that's still burrowing its way to Los Angeles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-quisenberry/reggie-jackson-hit-one-off-me-that-s-still-burrowing-its-way-to-los/) [Dan Quisenberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-quisenberry/) ## More by George P. Shultz > [Ideas matter a lot, the underlying ideas that stand behind policies. When you don't have ideas, your policies are flip-flopping all over the place.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/ideas-matter-a-lot-the-underlying-ideas-that-stand-behind-policies/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [If they are too big to fail, make them smaller.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/if-they-are-too-big-to-fail-make-them-smaller/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [I don't know how you define 'neoconservatism,' but I think it's associated with trying to spread open political systems and democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/i-don-t-know-how-you-define-neoconservatism-but-i-think-it-s/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [Oh, you know. I am secretary of state. My trips aren't successful. I just talk to people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/oh-you-know-i-am-secretary-of-state-my-trips-aren-t-successful-i-just/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [I like the life of ideas and applying ideas to action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/i-like-the-life-of-ideas-and-applying-ideas-to-action/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [Nothing ever gets settled in this town. a seething debating society in which the debate never stops, in which people never give up, including…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/nothing-ever-gets-settled-in-this-town-a-seething-debating-society-in/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [What we want is scientists who don't become part of the policy discussion: All they do is produce science. If someone becomes an advocate,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/what-we-want-is-scientists-who-don-t-become-part-of-the-policy/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [Before you get mugged by reality, take out an insurance policy. It's the Reagan way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/before-you-get-mugged-by-reality-take-out-an-insurance-policy-it-s/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [We have struggled with terrorism for a long time. In the Reagan administration, I was a hawk on the subject. I said terrorism is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/we-have-struggled-with-terrorism-for-a-long-time-in-the-reagan/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [The civilized world has a common stake in defeating the terrorists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/the-civilized-world-has-a-common-stake-in-defeating-the-terrorists/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [Nothing ever gets settled in this town (Washington). It's not like running a company or even a university. It's a seething debating society, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/nothing-ever-gets-settled-in-this-town-washington-it-s-not-like/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [I think the idea that you would do everything you can to prevent what is coming at you by way of something very disruptive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/i-think-the-idea-that-you-would-do-everything-you-can-to-prevent-what/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [The source of all the energy is the sun. The big challenge is, how do you use all of that energy? Solar power has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/the-source-of-all-the-energy-is-the-sun-the-big-challenge-is-how-do/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [ If somebody had made that \[deal\] to me when I was a businessman, I would have said he proposed to give me the sleeves… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/if-somebody-had-made-that-deal-to-me-when-i-was-a-businessman-i-would/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) > [My experience is that if the military didn't want to use force and was confronted with a president that did, the military would come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-shultz/my-experience-is-that-if-the-military-didn-t-want-to-use-force-and/) [George P. Shultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) [Explore all 34 George P. Shultz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-shultz/) ## More Burrowing quotes > [Reggie Jackson hit one off me that's still burrowing its way to Los Angeles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-quisenberry/reggie-jackson-hit-one-off-me-that-s-still-burrowing-its-way-to-los/) [Dan Quisenberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-quisenberry/) > [But without a caring society, without each citizen voluntarily accepting the weight of responsibility, government is destined to grow even larger, taking more of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeb-bush/but-without-a-caring-society-without-each-citizen-voluntarily/) [Jeb Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeb-bush/) > [And I despise your books, I despise wisdom and the blessings of this world. It is all worthless, fleeting, illusory, and deceptive, like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/and-i-despise-your-books-i-despise-wisdom-and-the-blessings-of-this/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [“Tackled some giant, burrowing beetles the other week, if you can believe that…. At that stage I didn’t know about it either – only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-speed/tackled-some-giant-burrowing-beetles-the-other-week-if-you-can/) [Mark Speed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-speed/) > [Of women, the most we can say, not being Frenchmen, is that they are burrowing animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-durrell/of-women-the-most-we-can-say-not-being-frenchmen-is-that-they-are/) [Lawrence Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-durrell/) > [“She had been on the surface of the leaf, the leaf like a page, and the page that of a book; then by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-zurcher/she-had-been-on-the-surface-of-the-leaf-the-leaf-like-a-page-and-the/) [Andrew Zurcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-zurcher/) > [The only times you touch the ball with your hand are when you tee it up and when you pick it out of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-venturi/the-only-times-you-touch-the-ball-with-your-hand-are-when-you-tee-it/) [Ken Venturi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-venturi/) > [People sometimes ask me if I would not give anything to be white, I answer, in the words of the song, most emphatically, 'No.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bert-williams/people-sometimes-ask-me-if-i-would-not-give-anything-to-be-white-i/) [Bert Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bert-williams/) > [They always mean beautiful things like hummingbirds. I always reply by saying that I think of a little child in east Africa with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-attenborough/they-always-mean-beautiful-things-like-hummingbirds-i-always-reply-by/) [David Attenborough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-attenborough/) > [“...I could feel her burrowing into my heart. I didn't know if the burrowing was like a kitten cuddling up to its mother or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-porter/i-could-feel-her-burrowing-into-my-heart-i-didn-t-know-if-the/) Jason Porter > [Denial is pushing something out of your awareness. Anything you hide in the basement has a way of burrowing under the house and showing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-sasportas/denial-is-pushing-something-out-of-your-awareness-anything-you-hide/) Howard Sasportas > [Selfishness is the most constant of human motives. Patriotism, humanity, or the love of God may lead to sporadic outbursts sweep away the heaped-up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-w-chesnutt/selfishness-is-the-most-constant-of-human-motives-patriotism-humanity/) [Charles W. Chesnutt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-w-chesnutt/) > [Like a small animal burrowing into its hole, I shift furniture around, and back myself into a cozy corner, with my back to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-steel/like-a-small-animal-burrowing-into-its-hole-i-shift-furniture-around/) [Danielle Steel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-steel/) > [Indeed Christianity passes. Passes - it has gone! It has littered the beaches of life with churches, cathedrals, shrines and crucifixes, prejudices and intolerances,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/indeed-christianity-passes-passes-it-has-gone-it-has-littered-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [So let's hear another one of your irrational fears. Mia grasped me by the arms and pulled herself in to my chest, like she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/so-let-s-hear-another-one-of-your-irrational-fears-mia-grasped-me-by/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) [Browse all 23 Burrowing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burrowing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Increasingly, the state system has been eroding. Terrorists have exploited this weakness by burrowing into the state system in order to attack it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George P. 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